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Addictive DrugsThe drugs listed on this page are only a sampling of the most commonly used and abused drugs. There are literally thousands of illegal prescription drugs and over-the-counter drugs available. However, the list below has all the classifications. All drugs, prescribed or illicitly obtained will fall within one of the classifications listed below. It should be noted that all drugs affect the brain and the body. These alterations can be lifesaving, as in easing someone’s pain, anxiety, tremors etc. Taken as prescribed, drugs serve a miraculous purpose. Unfortunately, genetic, biological, environmental, and psychological factors can combine to lead to drug dependence and abuse. Once that occurs, professional help will be required to ease withdrawal of the drug from the body, to stop ingesting the drugs, and to maintain abstinence. What may seem like innocent experimentation at first can swiftly become a life of despair, hopelessness, enslavement, and physical and emotional devastation. No one ever wins the game of Russian roulette with drugs. The following is a list of the major classes of abused drugs.
Important Definitions:
BarbituratesWhat are Barbiturates? Barbiturates are a class of drug that has a direct impact on the central nervous system. They are also known as sedative-hypnotics. They are used to ease anxiety, to induce sleep, for pre-surgical preparation, and to control convulsions. They can be classified as ultra-short, short, intermediate and long acting drug. This class of drugs comes in capsule, tablet, liquid, and injectable forms. The most popular dosages are the intermediate acting barbiturates. Barbiturates are not as popular these days since benzodiazepines were introduced. Sometimes people who are abusing other drugs, such as cocaine and methamphetamines, will also use barbiturates to help them calm down from their stimulant use. This pattern of using stimulants to “get up” and barbiturates to “come down” becomes addictive. Serious health consequences accompany this combination of drug addiction. Sign and Symptoms of Barbiturate Intoxication
Common Drugs under the Barbiturate Classification:
Cocaine
What is cocaine? Cocaine can be ingested in four manners: by smoking, snorting, or injecting it. The coca leaves can also be chewed. Smoking and injecting cocaine brings it instantly into the blood stream.
The intensity of the high depends upon the speed of absorption into the body. The faster the drug is absorbed into the body, the more intense the high but the effects last only minutes. Cocaine is highly addictive. Some people binge on cocaine, as people do with alcohol. This behavior usually involves ever increasing amounts of cocaine and can lead to a psychotic break.
Ecstasy
What is Ecstasy? Today, it is common for an ecstasy tablet to be combined with other drugs increasing the dangerous side effects on the body and the psyche. Individuals use ecstasy to gain a sense of total well-being, enhanced pleasure from sensory experiences, euphoric feelings, and sociability. It is commonly believed that ecstasy is safe. Ecstasy is a dangerous drug with dangerous and long term side effects. Signs and Symptoms of an Ecstasy High
A Few Symptoms of Frequent Ecstasy Use
Regular use of ecstasy can disrupt cognitive functions, including memory. The drug can be addictive and recovery requires therapy, abstinence, and learning new coping skills. Read more. Hallucinogens
Hallucinogens are either derived naturally from a plant, or they are created synthetically. Hallucinogens come in a variety of forms: solid, liquid, crystal, plant, extract, and powder. Regardless of the form, hallucinogens cause altered states of perception. People can see, hear, and feel sensations that are not real, but are perceived as real. Some hallucinogens were developed to be used as anesthetic. While these drugs are sometimes considered hallucinogens because they alter perception, they are more accurately known as dissociative anesthetics, or DA.
Signs and Symptoms of Hallucinogens
Negative Impact of Hallucinogens
The effects of hallucinogens can last from six to twenty four hours. These altered experiences are unpredictable, making each episode highly volatile; what can be exciting and fun one moment can quickly turn nightmarish the next. Flashbacks can persist and impair social or occupational functioning. A bad trip can continue to plague the user for years. This is a condition known as hallucinogen-induced persisting perceptual disorder (HPPD). (source: NIDA) InhalantsInhalants are chemical substances that are inhaled. These chemicals are found in common household items and come in a number of forms:
The chemicals inhaled are quickly absorbed into the bloodstream and then immediately transferred to the brain. The amount of inhalant taken into the body over a specific period of time will determine the overall effect. Initial absorption of an inhalant can manifest immediately with the loss of coordination and balance. After an hour the body absorbs the chemicals into the skin, muscles, and fat cells.
Sudden “sniffing death” is the most common form of death from inhalant use. The body is unable to assimilate the chemicals, which makes heart regulation difficult and results in cardiac arrest. Sniffing death is not the only way to die from inhalants:
AmphetaminesAmphetamines are a class of drugs that act as stimulants in the body. Prescription drugs and OTC drugs in this classification are most notable for their alerting, anti-fatigue, sleep-suppressing, and performance-enhancing properties. Studies have demonstrated that one in nine people who use prescription stimulants for purposes other than as prescribed will become addicted. (source: American Society of Addiction Medicine, 2003, pp.165-66)
The serious negative impact upon a person’s body can override any positive medicinal uses of the drugs if they are abused.
Commonly known Amphetamine Drugs
Though some people can experience compulsive sexual arousal, the more frequent experience is one of sexual inhibition. Marijuana
What is marijuana? A great deal of modern research on cannabis and its medicinal properties has resulted in quantifiable evidence that marijuana has pain relieving properties for people undergoing cancer treatment and other major ailments. However, there is a difference in the types of cannabis, how they are administered and the effects upon the body. Smoking marijuana is not the same as taking the drug orally in a tablet form. Patients suffering from pain going through cancer treatment, those suffering from AIDS related problems and glaucoma are usually given cannabis oral form. THC also stimulates the appetite. Some of the more common forms are THC, hashish, and hash oil, and Marinol. All forms of cannabis are psychoactive, mind altering drugs. Social Impact of Marijuana Abuse
There is on-going research examining the link between chronic marijuana use and schizophrenia, especially among young users. (read more Quick DrugGuide) Steroids
What are anabolic steroids? (AAS)
Commonly Used Steroids
(source: NIDA, Research Report Series, http://www.drugabuse.gov/ResearchReports/Steroids/anabolicsteroids2.html#anchor)
People who use steroids will often engage in “cycling” a pattern of using steroids for a period of weeks or months followed by a short period of time without the drugs. Other users will combine different types of steroids to get the maximum impact upon the body. Regardless, of the specific pattern of use, there are adverse influences upon the entire body.
The Use of Anabolic-Androgenic Steroids on the Brain The symptoms of addictive behavior for people who abuse steroids are the same as those of other addictions; these include negative behavioral patterns and financial stress. Animal research illustrates that use among adolescence males and adult males differs with regard to aggression and sexual behaviors, placing adolescent males at greater risk for adverse effects. (source: PubMedCentral, Kaliris Y. Salas-Ramirez, et al, 6/10/10, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2883314/?report=abstract&tool=pmcentrez ) “AAS abuse appears to be associated with a range of potentially prolonged psychiatric effects, including dependence syndromes, mood syndromes, and progression to other forms of substance abuse…” (source: PubMedCentral, Gen Kanayama, et al., 11/01/09, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2646607/?report=abstract&tool=pmcentrez) Research demonstrates that a AAS overdose mimics that of an opioid overdose. Withdrawal symptoms are difficult to manage and should be medically monitored. Electrolyte disturbances can occur. But, one of the most serious side effects of AAS withdrawal is depression, if left untreated it can lead to suicide. Benzodiazepines
What are benzodiazepines? There are three types of benzodiazepines prescribed: short acting, intermediate acting and long acting. The difference applies to how quickly the drug is absorbed into the blood stream and how long it lasts in the system. Of all prescribed drugs, this class of drugs is the most prescribed in the United States. Types of Short to Intermediate Acting Benzodiazepines
These are used to sedate people before sleep, surgery, anxiety, and for critical care settings.
Intermediate to Long Acting Benzodiazepines
These are used to treat severe anxiety or depression
Date Rape Drugs
Some of the drugs in this classification are also known as date rape drugs. Flunitrazepam (Rohypnol), illegal in the United States is one of the better known date rape drugs. Another commonly used date rape drug is GHB. Giving someone drugs without their knowledge is illegal. Doping someone’s drink to have sex with them is a serious criminal offense. Commonly Used Benzodiazepines as Date Rape Drugs
Though not a benzodiazepine, Ketamine is also used as a date rape drug. Some Prescribed Drugs Used as Sleep Aids
Withdrawal Symptoms
Once a cycle of addiction and withdrawal has begun, it can be difficult to break especially when the prescribing doctor is not familiar with addictive patterns. Opioids (Opiates)
What are Opioids? There are three groups of opioids:
Areas of the Brain Affected by Opioids
Withdrawal Symptoms of Opioids
Late symptoms of withdrawal include:
Opioid withdrawal reactions are extremely uncomfortable but are not necessarily life threatening, where as dehydration may occur, or heart failure do to the extreme physical stress during detox. Symptoms usually start within 12 hours of last usage. Detox should be supervised by a medical doctor and supporting staff. (source: MedlinePlus, Opiate Withdrawal, http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000949.htm) Drugs that have Properties Like Opiates
Most opiate overdose deaths occur in people who have just withdrawn or detoxed. Returning to drugs immediately following detox is very dangerous the user believes he or she can start at the last dosage. Such a choice increases the likelihood of overdosing because the body cannot absorb the higher level of drugs at one time. Medical detox is strongly advised followed immediately by treatment. Drugs, regardless of the miracles they perform in helping cope with environmental or psychosocial dilemmas, are dangerous. They need to be taken only as prescribed and never as a form of recreation. Damage from long term or heavy short term use of drugs can cause brain damage, organ damage or organ failure. |
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